Aerospace Designer Burt Rutan

In 2004, Burt Rutan's SpaceShipOne took the Ansari X-Prize for being the first private craft to reach space twice within two weeks. Now Rutan's company, Space Composites, has partnered with Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic to build one of the first commercial spacecraft to carry passengers beyond the earth's atmosphere.

In this clip which aired on Life & Times in 2003, NewsHour correspondent Jeffrey Kaye talks to Rutan about the quest.

SoCal Rewind is an on-going series bringing you past reports on the issues of today. By drawing on KCET's extensive archive of Southern California news, culture and public affairs, we'll seek to inform current events by providing a little historical perspective, and maybe answer the question: Is there anything new under the SoCal sun?